Daydreams
by Rayna Lissesul
Summary: Somewhere between the worlds of dreams and consciousness, they might have had a few amusing side adventures… Whether they actually occurred or not is all a matter of happenstance.
1. Christmas Coupons

Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to _Daydreams_, a collection of prompts based on scenes I wanted to add to my main DGM story, _Love Sleep, Come Unto Poverty_, but wasn't able to due to the evolving plot.

A few things about this collection:

1) Chapters won't be posted in any particular order; this one, for example, takes place after the Phantom Thief G arc, and I think the next chapter I'm going to post will take place quite a bit ago, around the time Gracia and Komui became official.

2) This won't have a set update schedule; if I manage to tear myself away from the main story long enough to write a chapter, or if I need a break from the main story and decide to fill out a prompt, this'll get updated.

3) What happens here isn't necessarily canon to the _LS,CUP_ story-line; like I said, the evolving plot prevented me from fulfilling these prompts, so it's likely that things I write here will contradict things in the main story.

4) Like _LS,CUP_, the rating of this story won't go above T.

^ . ^ Enjoy~!

P.S., Props go to **Ryo Hoshie** for prodding this collection into fruition.

D . Gray-man is owned by Katsura Hoshino, meaning it does not belong to me. I am in no way, shape, and/or form claiming to be the owner/creator of these concepts, though I do claim any characters not apart of the original D . Gray-man storyline (such as Gracia) mine. As such, I would appreciate fellow authors and readers to give credit where credit is due and not steal any of my characters and/or concepts. Thank you, and have a pleasant day.

* * *

><p>"Merry Christmas."<p>

Allen looked down at the paper-wrapped box with widening eyes, hesitantly reaching out and taking it when Gracia shook it slightly, pointedly, and staring at her as she quickly moved on.

"Merry Christmas." Gracia mumbled, offering a gift to Lenalee, next.

Lenalee blinked and took the box, smiling at Gracia sheepishly, "You know the twenty-fifth isn't for a few days… right?" Typically, Gracia was _behind_ on the holidays by a few days, not ahead…

"Yeah." Gracia sighed, nodding and muttering a brief "Merry Christmas" to Lavi before she went back to addressing Lenalee, "But we're all here now, and I don't want to risk any of you getting sent out on missions between now and then." She handed a gift to Lorelei, then turned to Kanda and held out a box for him, "Merry Christmas, Kanda."

After a pause, Kanda slowly looked up from his soba to stare at the woman standing beside him with a largely blank, slightly incredulous look, otherwise not moving or saying anything.

"C'mon, take it." Gracia insisted distractedly as she turned her attention back to the box of presents she'd brought into the cafeteria with her, shaking it slightly in his face like she'd done with Allen as she flipped through the presents to see who she had to deliver gifts to, next.

"…I don't want it." Kanda said bluntly after a pause, turning his attention back to his food and picking up his tea, "Take it back."

Gracia paused and glanced at him, waiting for him to finish his sip before she said, "I can't 'take it back,' they're handmade. I made them."

That made Kanda tense slightly and look back over at her, expression a bit more shocked and confused than before.

A light squeal made the others look over from inspecting their unwrapped gifts, Lenalee clapping her hands and smiling widely as she stared down at the open, lightly lacquered wooden box lying in the middle of the fanciful but now torn Christmas wrapping paper, the box filled with ornate hair decorations, some bejeweled and some of finely carved wood.

"Thank you!" Lenalee practically lunged and hugged Gracia tightly.

Gracia smiled and hugged back, "Consider them incentive to grow your hair out long again."

"Oooh, nice collection!" Lorelei crooned as she leaned over and looked through the hair clips, pins and sticks, "Are those Gramma Sophie's jade hair sticks? Very nice!"

That made Lenalee tense and pull back, looking up at Gracia with wide eyes, "Gramma Sophie…? W… Was she—"

"Just a more or less faceless relative who left me a few things." Gracia shrugged, sighing and turning her attention back to the box of undistributed gifts, "Mathilda's making me do things with my collection or she's threatened she'll seize all of it, and I figured they'd look much nicer on you than they would on me."

Lenalee bit he lip and sat back down in front of her present, running her fingers over the expensive hair ornaments as if they would break before she carefully put the lid back on and hugged the box to her chest, smiling and flushing happily.

Lenalee's positive reaction seemed to spur Lavi on, and he grinned widely and turned to his own present, shredding the paper and beaming at the new, brightly colored bandana inside. His eye then widened when he saw what was underneath the bandana, and he picked up the book and gapped at it, "Is this—"

"First edition of the _Divine Comedy_." Gracia glanced at Lavi seriously, pointing to him, "You take care of that."

Lavi nodded seriously, opening the book gingerly as if it were made of glass.

Noticing she was still holding Kanda's gift, Gracia looked back at him and sighed heavily, prodding him in the temple with the corner of the box as he looked at Lenalee and Lavi's gifts before glancing at Allen as he started to open his. "Seriously, take it."

Kanda glared and almost batted her hand away in retaliation to the prodding, then paused before he finally, reluctantly, took the box from her, glancing over when Allen perked and thanked Gracia happily while holding a new waistcoat and matching cravat and gloves. A scowl on his face, Kanda tore through the ribbon when it refused to give way, dropping the paper carelessly and opening the box inside to find—

Six new, hand-braided cords for him to tie his hair back with.

Gracia glanced at Kanda subtly as she continued shifting through the presents in the box in front of her, a bit amused when his eyes darted over the others at the table, presumably to make sure they were fawning over their presents and not watching him, before he set the small box down and picked up one of the hair cords, wrapping it around his forefingers and jerking slightly, probably to check the tensile strength.

Feeling a bit of pride bloom in her chest when Kanda blinked, looking slightly impressed and apparently approving, Gracia wished the kids another "Merry Christmas", leaning over when Lorelei grabbed her shoulder to kiss her cheek for the earring and necklace set before she walked off to deliver the rest of the presents.

She had to hurry… She'd loose steam soon, and she didn't want to go to bed before she'd finished.

Marie, Miranda, Krory, Timothy, Bookman, Chaozii, Socalo, Klaud, Tiedoll, Reever, Johnny, even Link, who looked a bit flustered and at a loss when he opened his new cufflinks, pen set and leather-bound journal.

The edge of the box held in one hand and balanced against her hip, Gracia looked down at her other hand as she walked down the hall and muttered to herself, ticking off names on her fingers.

The Solidor Family had never really gotten together for Christmas, and after her father had passed away Gracia and her mother hadn't celebrated much of anything…

Before he had passed away, though, Silas had always made sure that he and Gracia had had at least a small Christmas celebration, presenting each other with small, typically perishable things, like handmade sweets or plants. Things they didn't need Mathilda's permission to buy…

In short, as usual, Gracia hadn't come to think of such things as being incredibly important.

After Lorelei had told her that commoners felt otherwise about the illustrious Christmas, though (also leaving out that she and Mathilda had had several grand Christmas parties, themselves), Gracia had decided to go about celebrating with the others with the aspect of the holiday she was most comfortable complying with; giving people things.

Not that she was trying to cheapen the emotions of hers and others, but, when she had had to think seriously about what to give people, she had found it easier to express things with people she didn't particularly associate with (and even those she was close to) with gifts.

And, afraid even then that she hadn't been taking the idea behind gift-giving the right way, she had delved into her own collection of items to fish out jewelry, accessories, tools and other such things so she could personalize the gifts a bit more and assure that they were of the highest quality.

The hair accessories she had given Lenalee had been carefully selected from "Gramma" Sophia's massive collection.

Lavi's first edition copy of _Dante's Inferno_ had been locked away in the (hidden) restricted section of Barheim's library for years, a likely forgotten collector's item among the many other first edition books her family had stockpiled over the generations.

Allen's waistcoat, cravat and gloves had all been made by the tailor who her father used to personally contract for all of his clothing, the now elderly man still living in the town on the other end of the island.

The hair cords she had given to Kanda, as she had said, had all been handmade, and she had spent hours braiding the strips of cloth over and over again until she had achieved the correct tightness without making the cords stiff, until they drooped and felt heavy in ones hand like pieces of wet silk, optimal for knotting and later untying.

Lorelei's earring and necklace set had been bought from the jeweler who had made her tiara and other jewelry for her debutante ball.

And for Brigitte—

"Oh, my." Brigitte blinked, her eyes widening slightly as she opened the hinged, polished, white wooden box to reveal a makeup kit with a special, velvet-lined dip on one side cushioning a bottle of very expensive perfume.

"I hope you don't mind." Gracia blinked at her, "I placed a call over to the town and asked around the vendors until I found the one you usually buy your makeup from to ask for coloring suggestions."

Brigitte paused.

A little creepy, but…

"You didn't have to." Brigitte insisted, though she definitely had an edge of appreciation in her tone.

"That's the point, though, isn't it?" Gracia shrugged, smiling wryly, "The fact that one 'doesn't have to' but does, anyway?"

"True." Brigitte chuckled dryly, nodding, "These colors are perfect. Thank you."

Gracia smiled and nodded, then looked back in the box, frowning to see that she still had a few gifts left.

Who had she…?

Muttering some absentminded farewells, Gracia turned and walked out of Komui's office, pretending not to feel the eyes of the owner of the office, whose aura was just starting to feel hurt and affronted, boring into her back.

* * *

><p>"…Hey!" Komui whined after Gracia belatedly, well after she had left, "Where's mine? !"<p>

"Sir, get back to work." Brigitte sighed, the slightly warm look on her face quickly turning back into her typical visage of professional indifference (which was starting to become tinged with exasperation the longer she was around the Chinese man) as she set her gift aside and picked up her clipboard again.

"But she didn't even look at me!" Komui practically bawled, banging his fists on top of his desk, tempted to kick his feet.

Brigitte's thick brow twitched.

She did not want to listen to this…

"Did it not cross your mind that she might be waiting until you two are _alone_ to present you with your present?"

The ensuing silence told her he apparently hadn't, Komui having been far too focused on being childish, and when he began to tear back into his paperwork, as if working hard would make the day go faster, she rolled her eyes but couldn't complain.

Whatever it took to get him to work…

* * *

><p>When Komui finally made it to his room later that evening, he was put out to see that Gracia wasn't there.<p>

Pouting, he sullenly showered and changed into his nightclothes, making it a point to finish off his coffee and not brush his teeth afterwards before he started to drag his feet towards Gracia's room.

He felt he couldn't help being childish; after Lenalee had run into his office to show off the pretty new hair ornaments that wouldn't look quite right until her hair grew out a bit more but still looked nice, after Brigitte had come back from her lunch break with her lipstick a darker shade that fit her face much better, after he'd seen Lavi teasing Kanda about how protective he was being of the new hair tie he was wearing (given to him, to quote Lavi, by his "mother/lover"), the fact that Gracia had yet to say so much as a "Merry Christmas" to him (even though it was still a few days away) hurt.

He felt like pulling her hair and pushing her down in the sandbox.

Komui was further put out when he walked into Gracia's room to find her already dressed, tucked in and asleep.

He wondered how badly she'd "Sleep" him if he went over and poked her awake to demand an apology… and presents… and apology sex.

Komui was just standing over Gracia, hand raised and finger stiffened to optimal poking tenseness when Gracia let out a soft whining noise and rolled onto her back, stretching and pressing the back of her hand to her face as she reached out and groped at what was usually his side of the bed. His expression softened and he felt a warmth bloom in his chest when she frowned and let out another noise, this one of protest.

"Komui…"

Sighing, smiling and deciding that she had won the battle for now, Komui walked back over to 'his side' of the bed and sat, kicking his slippers off and slipping under the blankets before he turned and scooted over to Gracia. There, he settled down and wrapped an arm around her waist, smiling and nuzzling the top of her head when she turned to face him completely and settled down.

It was just a few days…

Sometime between now the twenty-fifth, she'd give him something.

* * *

><p>When the entire next day passed with Komui not only not getting anything, but also being shunned from her room that night, Komui had to wonder if he'd done something wrong…<p>

* * *

><p>When the day after that passed and she was sent out on a short mission, he was further hurt when she didn't even stop by to say goodbye before she'd left.<p>

And they'd interacted so well, otherwise, all day… So she wasn't mad…

Why was she…?

* * *

><p>When she came back the next day at midday and went straight to bed, Komui, who would have normally brushed it off as her needing sleep, took it as a personal attackinsult.

He hadn't done anything wrong…

She hadn't forgotten…

She was _attacking_ him for some reason!

* * *

><p>Finally, Christmas Day, when she'd had all damned day to give him his freakin' present, Komui flat out stood from a document he had been working on the moment the clock struck nine.<p>

Ignoring Brigitte when she snapped after him, Komui stormed towards Gracia's bedroom, mad.

But not _mad_ mad.

Childish mad.

Like when kids are denied candy at the cash register.

Or when they have to share their toys.

Screw it.

He was pulling her hair and finding a sandbox to push her down in.

All but kicking the door to her room open, Komui stormed inside with his mouth open and her name on his tongue, only to stop and deflate when he saw she wasn't there.

Then, he saw her bed covered in colorful things and moved closer, tipping his head and adjusting his glasses when he saw torn wrapping paper and—

Komui froze and blushed scarlet at the sight of Gracia's bed covered in lacy, silky, transparent, even leather lingerie and negligee.

Wh-What in the…? !

Then, he saw a piece of wrapping paper with a nametag on it.

'_To Gracia, Love Lavi~_'

And there was another one from Lorelei… and… Allen? And Lena—

No, no not his Lenalee! !

After taking a moment to mourn the official 'death' of his sister's chastity, Komui stood, looking around in a panic and licking his lips before turning and bolting out of the room, his feet carrying him to his own room in instinct.

The last time the kids had tried to 'help' her by putting smut in her hands, she had…

Where was sh—? !

The moment Komui burst into his room, he heaved a heavy sigh of relief, seeing Gracia, non-berserked and sitting on the edge of his bed calmly.

She glanced over at him as he hurried over to her, her face flushing slightly, and before he could say anything she stood and held something out.

Komui paused, blinking and looking down at the offered notebook before he slowly reached out and took it, tipping his head a bit at the little bow in the corner. Most of his questions and concerns leaving for the moment, Komui opened the small notebook, then tipped it over when he saw the writing was done in landscape, reading what was written on that page before blinking.

"…A coupon for 'One Free, Get Out of Trouble, No Matter How Severe The Offense, Card'?" Realizing what the little notebook was, Komui perked and looked up at Gracia, starting to smile and beam, "Really? ! A book of 'get out of jail free' coupons I can use whenever? !"

"Yes…" Gracia muttered, her face getting a bit redder as she glanced off to the side, "But they're not just for that…"

Giddy and excited, Komui looked back down at the booklet of coupons and flipped through them quickly, finding a few more 'get out of jail free' coupons before the writing changed. "Sleep-induced naps, back rubs, kinky sex in places other than the bedroom—" Just when Komui started to smirk deviously at the last one, he blinked when he got to a new section, not entirely sure he was reading it right. Slowly, he looked up at Gracia for confirmation, blinking again when he saw she was absolutely crimson and pointedly not looking at him.

Just then, he realized she was wearing a satiny, light blue and very short robe, and where the collar was falling open he could see peeks of lace—

"…What is this last one?" He smirked teasingly.

Gracia tensed, knowing was he was referring to, and lowered her head slightly, clenching her jaw and stuttering slightly, "Y-You know…"

"Not really… It seems your handwriting got a bit shaky when you did this one. What's it for?" When she didn't answer, clenching her jaw further, Komui asked again, his voice lower and huskier, "What's the coupon for, Gracia?"

Gracia tensed further, then turned back on him and pointed at him accusingly, snapping, "You know damned well what! That stupid, overly-kinky perverted thing you always want to do but I won't let you!"

"Until now…~" Komui chuckled, staring to walk towards her slowly.

He had to chuckle again when she let out an adorable, startled squeak, going to take a step back only to falter and nearly fall when the backs of her legs bumped into the side of the bed.

"Right?" Komui prompted with a grin, making a show of tearing the coupon in question out of the booklet and crumpling it in his hand.

Gracia's brow twitched. "…Goddamn—"

And Komui pounced.


	2. A Passionate Hatemance

This wasn't the prompt I had planned on typing out next… But it was what came to me, and it's pretty damned funny, if I do say so myself. XP The full scene came to me before the one I had originally planned on typing out because, after the previous Christmas special, this one had come to me as almost a tie-in, but, as I wrote it, the tie-in tendencies faded.

And I was able to allow that to happen because these are drabbles, so they don't have to be connected. ^ . ^ I'm finding writing drabbles to be quite fun~!

Also, I have to thank **Inuyoshie** for inspiring this one. She helps me think up some crazy s***. XD

D . Gray-man is owned by Katsura Hoshino, meaning it does not belong to me. I am in no way, shape, and/or form claiming to be the owner/creator of these concepts, though I do claim any characters not apart of the original D . Gray-man storyline (such as Gracia) mine. As such, I would appreciate fellow authors and readers to give credit where credit is due and not steal any of my characters and/or concepts. Thank you, and have a pleasant day.

* * *

><p>In all honesty, he hated the blonde bitch.<p>

She was loud, she was annoying, she was _far_ too talkative, too opinionated, too energetic, too much of a fucking busybody…

And, even though he was sure she hated him, in return, even if she didn't know the full extent of his hatred for her, she seemed to have taken to going out of her way to scold him whenever he was… well… _himself_ to those he had to interact with.

And, as she made it clear to him, being himself involved him, generally, being a "bitch" to everyone.

'_Sur-fucking-prising._' Kanda thought with a heavy roll of his eyes. (And, yes, with heavy sarcasm implied.)

She was almost as bad as the fucking _Usagi_, but at least she didn't go prancing around, using his first name and acting like they were _friends_. (The word made him shudder and feel ill.)

Still, the blonde bitch was actually _worse_ than the _Usagi_ in her own fucked up way: Kanda would have blown his brains out if Lavi had ever incited _this_ kind of reaction from him.

…It had happened again.

They'd been arguing about something, though Kanda couldn't remember what.

(Actually, Kanda didn't really remember most arguments he was involved in these days; unless they were with someone particularly important/prevalent in his life/annoying, the arguments just went in one ear and out the other, and even then there was only about a thirty percent chance he'd remember the argument later. Hell, sometimes, if he was particularly disinterested with the conversation/person he was arguing with, he would even forget what they were screaming at one another about _while_ they were arguing, in which case he'd turn to insulting the person, threatening them, calling them a vulgar name and then walking off.)

The blonde bitch had gotten up in his face, screaming at him.

He'd made a gesture to draw Mugen.

Her hand had flashed out and she'd used her fucking Innocence to freeze Mugen in place in its sheath.

He'd gotten angry, grabbed her by her collar and slammed her into a wall.

She'd giving him that fucking defiant and, more importantly, _challenging_ glare and made to kick him in the balls.

He'd pinned her body with his to make it impossible.

And then, like it had happened before, they were kissing one another harshly, Kanda trying to press the air out of her body and gag her with his tongue as he slammed himself harshly against her until the wall behind her creaked in protest.

When one of her hands made its way into his hair, then grabbed and jerked his head back to make her position more dominant – Oh, _fuck no_, that didn't fly – Kanda had responded by growling, moving his mouth down to the curve of her neck and sinking his teeth into her navy-blue veined, porcelain skin.

And, when the noise she'd let out in response had actually been one of savage gratification, his mind had hazed with crimson and he'd—

"Yu_-chan_? ! Lor? ! _Again? !_"

Kanda and the bitch had both frozen, Kanda feeling a fleeting flash of fear when he immediately thought it had been the support unit who had found them before he realized the voice had been male.

Then, when Kanda had looked over, he almost wished Gracia _had_ been the one to stop them again, because now that son of a bitch fucking red-headed bastard was grinning his ass off—

* * *

><p>"Go ahead, Yu<em>-chan<em>." Lavi cooed, pressing the tips of his fingers against Kanda's back and urging him forward gently.

Kanda nearly spun around and bit his fingers off, snarling not unlike a rabid dog and hissing, "I'm not fucking doing this, shit-for-brains! _And don't fucking call me 'Yu'! !_"

"Oh-ho-hoooo, yes, you are." Lavi chuckled/cackled, "And, on top of that, for the next three days I'll call you whatever I damn well please. That is, unless you _want_ me to tell Gracia I caught you making out with her sister _again_."

Kanda ground his teeth, his body shaking with effort as he worked to keep from turning around and snapping the annoying bastard's neck.

"And Yu made such a _lovely_, bruise-like hickey on her neck, too~! All framed with little indentations from teeth and needing a Band-Aid because it won't stop seeping blood—"

"_Fuck off._" Kanda hissed darkly, not looking back as he held out his shaking hand palm up, waiting to be handed whatever the damned Bookman Jr. wanted him to give the older woman.

Lavi snickered and set something in his palm.

Kanda took one look at it and hissed like a cat that had just had water thrown at it, dropping the offensive item as if it were a spider or a slug (or a female sanitary napkin) and jumping back.

Lavi cackled and scooped it back up, turning to Kanda with a perverted grin and holding out the offensive item again.

Kanda's brow twitched.

And people thought _he_ was evil? !

"You know what to do, Yu_-chaaan_."

"…I could kill you after this."

"I'd die laughing." Lavi's grin widened.

Kanda's brow twitched again, and he sighed harshly and turned to face the four-way intersection in the hallways, pursing his lips when a droopy, sleepy Gracia suddenly stumbled by. How did the _Usagi_ time these things…

Closing his eyes and pursing his lips until the muscles started to burn from the strain, Kanda steeled himself before opening his eyes, taking the item from the _Usagi_'s hand and storming forward with purpose, his hands clenching into fists and the offensive object he was about to give the woman digging into his skin (though his accelerated healing made sure he hardly thought about it…).

When Gracia didn't notice him and kept stumbling down the hall, almost looking like she could be dozing off on her feet, Kanda scowled and stormed after her, "Woman!"

His bark echoed down the hall and sent a shock up Gracia's spine, making her jump slightly, and when she spun around slowly to look up at him with drowsy, slightly glassy eyes, Kanda stopped in front of her and tensed up, grinding his teeth.

Gracia blinked up at Kanda slowly, "…You need somethin', Kanda?"

"Shut up for a minute." Kanda seethed, closing his eyes and clamping them together until he felt a vein throb in his temple. He nearly snapped then and there when he thought he heard the sounds of a certain annoying red-head's snickers echoing down the hall, but Kanda sucked it up, inhaled deeply, then opened his eyes and focused an intense glare on Gracia, holding out his hand and opening his palm in offering.

Slowly, the woman looked down at the ring in his hand, blinking slowly.

And then there was silence.

With every moment that ticked by, Kanda could feel the veins in his temple and neck getting more and more prominent, the back of his neck starting to burn fiercely as they stood there in awkward silence.

He was just about to snap at the woman when she finally spoke.

"…What's that for?"

…Kanda wanted to slam his head through the wall.

"Don't… ask… Just… put it… on…"

Gracia looked up from the ring and blinked up at him vacantly, "But what is it?"

"…It's a ring." Kanda seethed.

"…And you're… giving it to me…? As a gift or something…?"

"…Or something." Kanda was going to shoot himself later. He should have just let the _Usagi_ tell the woman he'd kissed her sister.

"…Yu, I'm not a mind reader." Gracia sighed, using his first name to show him she was now being serious. "What is the ring for—"

"WILL YOU JUST ACCEPT MY DAMNED PROPOSAL AND PUT ON MY FUCKING RING SO I CAN BE DONE WITH THIS? !"

When Gracia's eyes just widened and she regarded him with a lost look, Kanda found himself, again, wanting to slam his head into a wall.

He definitely should have just risked her "going Komui" on him and her bitch sister again with a Komlin and embarrassing him.

This wasn't worth it.

"…_What is going on here?_"

Kanda tensed and Gracia leaned to the side a bit and peeked past him, blinking slowly and waving, "Hey, Komui."

Feeling daggers being glared into his back, Kanda looked back over his shoulder slowly, his lips pursing and his brow twitching when he saw Komui some thirty feet behind him, the older man standing with his feet spread in a wide stance, his arms ramrod straight at his sides, his hands clenched into fists and his glasses sliding down the bridge of his nose as he stared at them intensely, crazily.

Kanda was a bit surprised his hair wasn't flailing and writing with its own life force, and that his coat wasn't billowing out in a non-existent wind…

Unlike previous Komlin attacks, Komui didn't even bother with the typical warning preamble; he reached out and grabbed a nearby tapestry and pulled it aside, opening up one of the many passageways hidden behind such tapestries that were meant to allow servants quick paths from one side of the building to the other. Immediately, a Komlin emerged from the passageway, and Kanda was spinning around, dropping the ring and drawing Mugen as the robot dove for him.

Gracia just blinked and stared as an epic battle commenced in front of her.

"…I still don't get what's going on."

* * *

><p>Lavi practically sobbed with laughter, slumping against Allen and wrapping his arms around the smaller boy's neck as his legs went weak.<p>

Allen yelped and stumbled, almost falling over, and started to try to pull Lavi off of his neck, glancing at Timcanpy as he did to make sure the golden golem was still recording the battle down the hall.

"W-We'll call it…" Lavi gasped as he started to recover, stumbling back to his feet and grinning widely as he weakly wiped at his laughter tears, "_Yu-chan vs. Flippy : The Ultimate Battle for Gracia's Hand in Marriage_."

Allen chuckled, shaking his head, "You know Kanda is going to kill you."

"If he does, make sure everyone in the building sees this footage." Lavi snickered, "Then it'll all be worth it."

Allen rolled his eyes, smirking slightly, then glanced back down the hall, watching Kanda and fight the Komlin a bit longer. "…He would have just been better off telling her about what happened with Lorelei, himself. Because if Gracia finds out after this, she'll still—"

"Duh." Lavi snorted, chuckling, "But, c'mon, really; you know Yu_-chan_ isn't that bright."

"True." Allen's smirk darkened a bit, likely as cruel jokes about Kanda's intelligence flashed through his mind. He then sighed, "I wonder how long it'll take before Gracia finds out that—"

"**YOU AND LORELEI DID **_**WHAT**_**? !**"

Allen and Lavi's eyes widened as Gracia's enraged voice echoed down the hall, and when another Komlin came to join the first, this one clearly being piloted by Gracia, the two boys slumped against one another and started laughing wildly as this second Komlin took off down the hall, Gracia's enraged bellow of "_**LORELEEEEEEI! ! WHERE ARE YOU? !**_" echoed through the building.

Off to the side, Link rolled his eyes heavily and put his thick notebook away.

This wasn't even worth reporting.


	3. I'll Never Bathe Again

I'd always wanted to do a communal bathroom scene (because that's actually how everyone bathed in the old building; communally), but, again, I never found a place to squeeze it in… Man, do I love this collection. ^ . ^

Since I had wanted to do a bathroom scene, I did have something of a rough outline in mind, but because I wouldn't have had to devote an _entire_ chapter to it, the basic scene didn't have enough meat to it to make it chapter-worthy… And, in my effort to beef it up a bit, this was born.

D . Gray-man is owned by Katsura Hoshino, meaning it does not belong to me. I am in no way, shape, and/or form claiming to be the owner/creator of these concepts, though I do claim any characters not apart of the original D . Gray-man storyline (such as Gracia) mine. As such, I would appreciate fellow authors and readers to give credit where credit is due and not steal any of my characters and/or concepts. Thank you, and have a pleasant day.

* * *

><p>It was only after all of the Exorcists had returned from Noah's Ark in Edo, after Gracia had come back from Singapore, that she had really had the chance to try taking a bath in the communal bathhouses.<p>

Before the extended missions they had all been sent on to recover their Generals, back when she had first joined the Order, going to the public baths probably wouldn't have been that much of a good idea… Gracia was only aware of the etiquette that came with bathing in _private_ restrooms (which no one really thought of but was basically aware of, which meant Gracia was _subconsciously_ aware of it and thus, really, less fit to use a bathroom that wasn't her own than the average person); trying to retain the rules that came with _public_ bathing would have been far beyond her.

Now, though, she was _far_ more aware than she had been all of those months ago, not to mention she no longer had Sleep on her…

…Frankly, _had_ Gracia had Sleep on her, she probably would have been far too lazy to venture the two sections down the building (the residential areas being at the very top, the medical ward being below that, and the bathhouses being below that, though a few of those took up a few 'floors,' so saying "two floors down" would have been inaccurate) to go to the bathhouses.

Now that Hevlaska had Sleep, though, and she was having problems sleeping (something she was starting to be mad at Komui for, because, oddly, _he_ could make her feel sleepy…), Gracia was dazedly going about doing things, including some exploring… And, when she had come across Lenalee padding down the hall with a robe and toiletries in her arms and the girl had explained where she was going, Gracia had decided she might as well try it out.

Maybe a hot bath would even help her sleep…

After getting a general idea of what she would need to bring from Lenalee, Gracia had left the younger girl to wander back to her room, thinking as she went.

Being European, when she thought of 'bathhouses,' the first images that came to mind were Roman/Greek public bathing facilities, though she wasn't very familiar with even those… Something in the back of her mind (lingering traces of upbringing, most likely) screamed that public baths were 'uncouth' and 'disgusting,' even though such things had been around and accepted for _centuries_…

She was even vaguely sure that Britain, itself, had a history (though she wasn't sure if it was small or not) with public bathing facilities.

So, with an image of a Romanesque _balnea_ in mind, it is understandable that Gracia had to stop and stare in confusion when she walked into what she was sure was the bathing facility and was met with the sight of… lockers?

She paused, looking around, then slowly started to make sense of it when she saw the robes and slippers peeking out of some of the open lockers.

Oooh… This was some kind of changing room…

It was an awkward feeling, stripping down, leaving her things in a locker and walking around with nothing but a towel on. And it only got worse when she walked through the changing area and out the doors in the back, her confusion only increasing when she was met with a line of faucets and stools on a cold tile floor, the faucets lining one wall and one stool beneath each faucet.

When she looked at the 'baths' beyond these faucets to find several large, tiered pond-like structures with steaming, murky green water, the pools actually set in tubs made of large river stones and sheets of bamboo screening lining the walls behind the tubs (likely for aesthetics, considering that, even beyond the bamboo, there was a cement wall), it slowly dawned on Gracia, as she was standing there, frozen in confusion, that what she was looking at wasn't a European-style bathhouse… But an Asian one.

And, with that, any semblance of bathing etiquette she might have fancied a guess at flew out the window; she officially had no idea what she was doing.

So, she was stuck standing there for a time yet, wracking her brain and fretting…

What had happened to Lenalee? Wasn't she supposed to be…

After standing there, staring, a connection slowly formed in Gracia's mind…

Back when she'd been wandering, during the summers, she'd seen families visiting public pools… And before they got in the water, the people would always…

After looking around again, still feeling slightly apprehensive, Gracia walked over and sat on one of the stools, in front of a faucet, which she used to start washing herself.

People took basic showers before getting into public pools, right? Maybe this had the same principle…

Once she'd washed herself, Gracia wrapped her towel around her body again and stood, inching over to the giant, steaming green pools slowly, as if afraid someone would jump out of the water and… reprimand her or something, maybe for not doing something right.

And, really, it wasn't her fault; nobles _hardly_ bathed together, and, even when she'd been a wanderer, she'd always had an unshakable, ingrained desire to bathe alone. It wasn't out of any form of modesty (as shown that one time Komui had walked in on her naked and she hadn't really responded other than to cover herself so he would stop panicking); it was more a… habit, like covering your nose and mouth while sneezing or washing your hands before sitting down for dinner.

Seriously, though… where _was_ Lenalee?

Sighing and resigning to her fate to use the communal bath alone her first time (maybe Lenalee had gotten pulled aside on her way to the baths for another medical examination or something), Gracia folded her towel over her arm and slipped down into the hot, murky green water, shuddering as her legs practically melted under her in response to the soothing, mild scald and slumping down to sit on the ledge hidden in the water.

That smell… Was the green coloring caused by some kind of bath salt or mineral additive?

Whatever it was, it felt nice…

Gracia barely heard the long, low groan that echoed through the moist, muggy room as she closed her eyes and tipped her head back to rest it on the warm, wet rocks behind her, and was even less aware of the fact that the groan was hers as she sank further unto the water and just… let go.

As the heat seeped into her bones, soothing knots and bruises she hadn't even known she had, Gracia started to feel comfortably… out of it.

Not sleepy or even drowsy, really, which disappointed her to a level; she'd been hoping that this would calm her into making her body forget that she needed Sleep to sleep, like Komui had been able to, but, while this was undoubtedly comforting, she could tell it wouldn't make her tired enough to sleep. Fortunately, it had her so relaxed that that revelation didn't even stress her out…

No, she was out of it in a different way… Almost as if she'd been drugged, but not quite, because with drugs the body can tell that the relaxation is chemically induced, which can create cognitive problems.

This was soothing and relaxation-inducing in a way that was… entirely its own.

It was infusing her body with a borderline painful heat that had her feel like her insides were melting, but it was one of those… good pains that you enjoy in a more than slightly masochistic way, like when you crack your back/neck or drink something hot after you've been out in the biting cold for too long.

And, the longer she sat there, the less aware she became of her extremities… Her body was still registering the heat, but she was almost… numb, unable to tell her fingers from her hands from her arms from her torso, and never mind her toes, feet and legs…

This was…

_Ooooohhh_…

She could get hooked on this…

Gracia wasn't entirely sure when she'd dozed off— No… Wait… She hadn't really dozed off, because that implied sleeping. …Drifted? Yeah… Yeah, drifted sounded better; because, really, when she was partially floating in the water, that was what it felt like, anyway… Anyway, she wasn't sure when she'd drifted off, but when she drifted back in, it was because her rest had been disturbed.

Typically, having her rest disturbed would have resulted in her reacting with a bit of violence/annoyance.

But, really… It was all good.

It was all so good, in fact, she couldn't even really bring herself to care when she dazedly realized that the voices that had disturbed her were male. She was just… way too chill to care.

"So, Lee, have you hit that ass yet?"

"…Cross, I swear, every time you come back, you've managed to learn a new way to muddle the English language."

There was the sound of first one, then two taps running.

"That your way of saying you don't get the question?"

"Well, either that, or it could also mean I won't dignify your question with an answer until you use proper syntax—"

"Alright, alright, so Mommy doesn't get street slang. How far along are you in weaseling your way into that drowsy red-head's pants?"

A pause, then an indignant sputter, "G-General! Honestly!"

A snort, "Whaaaat, I've seen the way you look at her."

"I can assure you, I have absolutely no idea what you—"

"Why in the hell are you speaking so formally? And don't try to lie to me, Lee; you're acting like such a nerdy little schoolboy around her I'm surprised your palms aren't sweating. Or maybe they are—"

Coldly. "I'll thank you to keep to your own shower."

An irritated sigh, "Again with the formal language… Seriously, though, have you made _any_ moves?"

Silence, the taps turning off, and then the wet, slapping sound of padding feet.

"Cross," A sigh, this one also irritated, "There is nothing of what you are implying going on. Not all men are like you; we don't _all_ need to be in an intimate relationship to pass the time."

"Now, normally, I would agree with that; after all, not all men can be as manly as me on a constant basis—"

A disbelieving snort.

"—But I happen to know that _you_ haven't even taken a stab at a relationship in _how_ many year—"

"—Cross, not here, not now."

Cross snorted, but the conversation dropped, and then there was the light sound of water splashing, the edges of ripples disturbing the water around Gracia a moment later.

Even as relaxed as she was, she could feel her pulse starting to pick up, an edge of anxiety starting to spike in her chest.

Please, anyone other than Komui and Cross… Literally, _anyone_ other than Komui and Cross…

_Especially_ with what had been going on between her and Komui latel—

But no, Gracia forced herself to breathe calmly, it'd be fine… She couldn't get out of the water, but Cross and Komui were quite a ways away from her, and if they hadn't noticed her yet, maybe she could get away with staying quiet and still until they left.

Able to make herself ignore their low murmurs, Gracia's forced, deep breathing slowly got more and more natural, and it wasn't long before she was relaxing and drifting again, gladly letting the heat consume and dull her senses once more.

Unfortunately, she wasn't able to relax for long before—

"Hey… Hey. Oi! Buddy! Don't fall asleep in here; sleeping in water this hot'll hurt you."

Gracia jumped and yelped when something sopping wet and limp smacked her face, cautiously reaching up and pulling the small, wet towel off of her face and glancing over to see Cross giving her a disinterested glance out of the corner of his eye, his hair tied back and a small cup in his hand as he drank, his other arm lazily draped along the edge of the rock basin behind him. Sitting a good foot away from him, Komui was eyeing her with a thin veil of curiosity, his hair frizzed up around his head and a similar small cup in his hand.

After staring at them silently for a moment, holding the small towel out in front of her face, Gracia sank down into the water a bit more.

Cross she didn't particularly care for, but did Komui really not recognize her…? What was in those cups…

"He's right, you know." Komui spoke up, reaching out and taking a small pitcher off of a floating, wooden tray in front of him and Cross, refilling his cup, "These baths aren't made for extended soaking." When she didn't reply, Komui frowned at her, looking a bit suspicious and concerned, "Just how long have you been in the water?"

Still using the towel as a veil, letting it stay plastered to her chest and holding the topmost edges up in front of her face, Gracia pursed her lips and eyed the floating tray with the pitcher. Was it alcohol? Was that why they hadn't recognized her?

"…You want some?" A lazy grin crossed Cross' face and he refilled his cup before setting the small pitcher down and pushing it back over to her, "Here."

Gracia watched as the tray floated over to her, inching to the side slightly and letting it hit the edge of the tub with a dull thunk. She then looked back at Cross, incredulity slowly setting in.

Cross, in return, frowned at her, "Oi, what's your problem? You been in here so long the heat's cooked your brain?"

Her heat-lazy high having long since worn off, Gracia sighed, her face flushing a bit more than it already was as she lowered the towel to show her face but kept it pressed against her chest, "Alright, I think I walked into the wrong bathroom…"

"…Eh?" Cross quirked his brow, "What in the hell are you talking about?"

Komui, on the other hand, now had his brow furrowed and was staring at Gracia seriously, contemplatively. "Who are you again…?"

Gracia didn't answer, sinking down into the water further.

Ignoring Cross when he looked at him questioningly, Komui just continued staring at Gracia intently. She could practically see the gears turning in his head…

Then, Komui's eyes widened and he flushed darkly, the cup falling from his hand and sinking into the water, "G-Gracia? !"

Gracia's brow twitched and she sank lower into the water, her mouth slipping beneath the surface.

Both of Cross' brows shot up as he looked back at her.

"Gracia, Gracia, you can't be in here!" Komui almost stuttered as he spoke rapidly, standing. One hand automatically went down to keep the sopping wet towel he had wrapped around his waist in place as he pointed over to the spigots lining the wall, "Y-You have to get out! What are you _doing_ in here? ! _How long_ have you been in here? !"

"I don't know…" Gracia whined slightly, the pressure building in her face until her skin felt fight to burst as her embarrassment increased. She kept the towel pressed to her chest as she stood, staring at the water and reaching for the edge of the bath to paw around for her towel, "I was supposed to meet Lenalee; damn it, she was supposed to show me how to use communal baths… But when I got in here and she wasn't here, so I just… I guess I walked into the wrong—"

"Gracia, you _can't_ be in he—"

"Alright, I get it, I'm getting out!" Gracia snapped weakly, looking up to glare at Komui and twitching when she saw him staring at her body with wide eyes.

"N-No, you don't get it…" Komui shook his head slowly, "You _really_ can't be in here! I-In the water… I put a… Uh…"

Noticing Cross staring at her in mild shock, Gracia frowned and looked down at herself… and felt her stomach drop down into her feet, all of the wonderful heat draining out of her body to be replaced with a violent, horrified chill when she saw that—

Her chest was flat.

Completely flat.

Like a—

And her groin… Her groin wasn't…

"…Really, Komui?" Cross sighed heavily, breaking the stunned silence in the room, "I know you like to test your experiments in the baths, but _really_? You had to put something in the water that—"

"You turned me… into a man?"

"It… was a necessary precaution…" Komui mumbled weakly, "To ward people off of going into the baths they knew they weren't supposed to… It was to keep my precious Lena… I thought everyone… You didn't read the sign at the entrance…?"

Gracia stared down at herself, static starting to ring in her ears as she numbly mumbled, "Do I strike you as the kind of person who reads posters…?"

There was a long, silent pause.

"…It wears off…?"

…His tone indicated he was trying to be hopeful and helpful.

…Gracia found herself picking up the floating tray and throwing it at his head.

* * *

><p>Cross stared after the genderbent woman as she stormed off, a long towel needlessly wrapped around the full length of her torso down to her knees.<p>

He sighed and finished off his cup of sake, remarking to Komui as the man floated face-down in the water, "She's right, you know; you really shouldn't pour _those_ kinds of experiments in the baths." He was referring to what he had vaguely understood of what the wo-man had screamed at Komui before exiting the bath.

In the water, Komui just continued floating, a bit of blood dribbling from a cut on his temple.

Cross sighed again and eyed his now empty cup before setting it on the ground outside of the edge of the sunken bath, tipping his head back and closing his eyes.

"And you should probably go after her, because I'm sure I'd represent the sentiment of the entire male populace here when I say I _sure as hell_ am not showing her how to use _that_."

Immediately, huge bubbles formed around Komui's head as he exhaled and flailed.


	4. Drow Poison : Alucinari

Really short one this time around, but this prompt wasn't really meant to be long… XD Funny as hell, though. At least, I think it's funny… I _hope_ it's funny.

This isn't a Valentine's special or anything; I _was_ thinking of doing one, but I didn't have the Valentine's spirit. Though I might, eventually. ^ . ^'

Oh, and the song Komui sings in this chapter is actually one mentioned in LS,CUP (Gracia once threatened to make Komui serenade Lvellie with it): It's called "When You Were Sweet Sixteen" and it was written by James Thornton in 1898, so it's actually a song that was around during the time period DGM is set in. ^ . ^' Oi, it was hard to find a love song from the 19th century…

D . Gray-man is owned by Katsura Hoshino, meaning it does not belong to me. I am in no way, shape, and/or form claiming to be the owner/creator of these concepts, though I do claim any characters not apart of the original D . Gray-man storyline (such as Gracia) mine. As such, I would appreciate fellow authors and readers to give credit where credit is due and not steal any of my characters and/or concepts. Thank you, and have a pleasant day.

* * *

><p>Being in a relationship with an Exorcist wasn't easy, especially when the Exorcist in question had an effect-type Anti-Akuma Weapon.<p>

Komui sighed softly as he, yet again, had to give into Gracia's flustered, embarrassed, unintelligible squeaking and removed his hands from underneath her shirt, sitting back with a pout as she quickly (well, Gracia quick, at least) pulled away from him and clambered back to sit at the other end of the sofa.

He watched quietly as she looked away and went about fixing her appearance, a dark, adorable blush on her fa—

Oh, he couldn't help himself~!

Komui lunged and pinned Gracia to the sofa, ignoring her ensuing cry as he pressed against her and kissed her warmly, enthusiastically. Though she initially struggled a bit, when he didn't take it farther than that she slowly clamed down and gave in, starting to kiss back. Komui shuddered when her hands went from pushing at his chest to grabbing at the lapels of his jacket for support.

Her reaction only made him get even more enthusiastic, Komui moving his mouth down to her neck and quickly starting to leave red marks, the action of freeing up her mouth and resulting in her starting to let out the _cutest_ noises.

Komui grinned against her skin.

She was just _too_ adorable.

Slowly, slyly, Komui slipped his hands back up under her shirt, making sure he didn't stop moving his mouth as he resumed his earlier groping and fondling.

Though Gracia did jerk sharply in his hands and let out another, louder noise, she didn't struggle against him like she had moments before, so Komui took that as the okay to redouble his efforts.

He couldn't help being enthusiastic – perhaps overly enthusiastic – not only was there no telling when someone would show up looking for him, but, really, he was a virile adult with a flushed, panting, writhing female partner beneath him. His body was being _very_ clear about what demands it had of him at the moment.

So, even when Gracia started to protest again, Komui… had something of a hard time pulling away like he had before.

And then, he kinda… well…

…Gave her a reason to use Sl—

"Drow Poison : Alucinari!"

* * *

><p>Kanda, at his empty table in his quiet, back corner of the room, ate his soba calmly, feeling that things, for the first time in a while, were… at peace.<p>

The _Moyashi_ and _Usagi_ were out on a mission, which meant there was no one around to bug him and make him seem less threatening and more approachable, which meant no one was approaching him for something stupid, which meant he wasn't angry, which meant Lenalee didn't have a reason to lecture him, which meant things were quiet…

And, since things were quiet, he could take the time to appreciate his soba.

Oh, days like this didn't come around that often, which meant Kanda was in something that almost resembled a good mood.

Of course, it also meant that if anyone came along and disrupted his peace, he was likely to have a more violent reaction than usual.

Still, that wasn't going to happen, Kanda assured himself as he kept eating. There weren't many left in the building who would be stupid enough to bug him, and those that were still there were otherwise occupied.

Kanda was going to have himself a pleasant day off.

Content, Kanda continued eating his soba, so convinced that nothing bad would happen that he didn't bother looking behind himself when those around him (but not at his table, of course) started muttering and glancing over at the entrance to the mess hall. He didn't even think much of it when he felt a presence behind him. No one would dare bug him when he was at peace…

…He should have known better.

Really, he should have.

Of course, it's also fairly common knowledge that Kanda isn't exactly the brightest crayon in the box.

He was still so convinced that no one would bug him that, when a pair of hands suddenly jerked him to his feet and spun him around, Kanda could only blink dumbly and collapse in Komui's arms, stunned.

"…_When first… I saw the love-light in your eyes…_"

Kanda stiffened, staring up at Komui in shock when the man pressed a hand to his lower back and gently grabbed his left hand in his right, starting to lead Kanda though a slow waltz as he kept singing.

"_I dreamed the world held not but joy for me._"

Kanda's brow twitched, his mouth hanging partway open and a tic forming in his neck as his brain short-circuited.

What in the fuc—? !

"_And even though we drifted far apart,_" Komui sang on in his untrained, warbling baritone, his eyes glassy and heavily lidded as he continued gently leading Kanda through the steps, seemingly oblivious to the utter silence around them and the shocked stares, "_I never dream but what I dream of thee._"

"…What… fuck… the… Stu… Motherfucking… _Iie_! !" Kanda switched to his mother tongue, starting to struggle.

Komui, showing strength Kanda knew for a fact he hadn't possessed before this, managed to keep his hold on Kanda, still dancing and now raising his voice to sing over Kanda's cursing and protesting, "_I love you as I never loved before, since first I met you on the village green._" He held Kanda out and twirled with him, "_Come to me or my dream of love is o'r… I love you as I loved you, when you were sweet…_"

Kanda was just starting to properly shout obscenities and make moves to attack Komui violently when the man suddenly turned them in one final circle and dipped Kanda, hovering over him and staring down at him with a dazed as hell but loving expression.

"_When you were… sweet sixteen…_"

Kanda felt something scarily close to genuine horror well in him when Komui slowly closed the space between them, and then—

"_**MOTHERFUCKER! !**_"

"Wh-What the—? E-EEEEYYAAAAAAH! !"

* * *

><p>Dull, quiet and calm, Gracia stood in the doorway of the mess hall and watched the ensuing chaos quietly, nodding in acknowledgement to Bookman when the old man walked over to stand beside her, smoking a pipe.<p>

"…You know, he has a surprisingly good singing voice for someone who's never taken vocal lessons before."

"Yeah… And I've never seen Kanda blush that darkly. It's cute."

"Hmm… You know, if he figures out that you're the one behind this, he probably won't forgive you this time."

"Eh, I'll just tell him that he was the only one I could trust to make sure Komui got the point. It's the truth, after all. He'll only stay mad at me for a little bit then."

"…True." When some high velocity blood spatter stained a wide arc on the wall, Bookman paused before asking, "You don't think you went too far this time?"

"Nnnnope." Gracia drawled slightly before turning on her heel and starting to meander towards the medical ward.

If Kanda didn't get the point across, she'd just have to play hardball next time.

When was Malcolm due to visit again…?


	5. Renault

This one is actually less cracky, less of a Daydream… And more a general telling of Renault's story. Because it _is_ here, though, it won't necessarily fit into the canon… Which is just fine. As long as you get the idea, right?

Renault's story deserves a proper telling.

And, since Renault isn't the kind to tell you, himself, I'll tell you here, in his stead.

D . Gray-man is owned by Katsura Hoshino, meaning it does not belong to me. I am in no way, shape, and/or form claiming to be the owner/creator of these concepts, though I do claim any characters not apart of the original D . Gray-man storyline (such as Gracia) mine. As such, I would appreciate fellow authors and readers to give credit where credit is due and not steal any of my characters and/or concepts. Thank you, and have a pleasant day.

* * *

><p>Though the actual raid that lead to the fall of the Curtiss crime family only took a few hours, the buildup had taken months.<p>

So many months that, by the time the police finally closed in on them, most of the members had fled.

Solomon Curtiss, the prideful man he was, had refused to believe that the police would _dare_ try to take them down after what the Cox family, the crime family that had become the Curtiss family after Solomon had taken charge of it, had done to them thirty years earlier.

He had been warned, over and over, that something strange had been going on… That lesser members of the family were slowly being picked off, one by one, that someone was trying to alert them, make them feel pressure and fear…

Someone had it out for them.

The fact that the police had done nothing about the brutal murders of the Curtiss family's lesser members should have been enough of a warning. Solomon Curtiss, however, had refused to yield to fear tactics; he only upped the ante, his efforts to secure his territory and get the loyalties of the other families and gangs in his pocket getting more and more violent.

And, with the pressure building and the fear swelling, other members of the family didn't so much quit as they simply skipped town and fled to mainland Europe; no one _resigned_ from the Curtiss family. You lived and died "loyal."

That was why Solomon had those who fled hunted down and killed; so they could die with at least some "dignity" rather than be seen as "cowards."

When one of Solomon's own right-hand men, who had also been his advisor and friend for years, expressed his desire to take his wife and children to Switzerland, hoping that his friendship with Solomon would allow for some slack to be cut, Solomon ordered the first open execution that had been held since the family had been the Cox family.

Solomon had been the one to stand before William and his wife and daughters as they had been lined up, sobbing and begging, in a firing line.

Well… William hadn't protested, Renault remembered. The man had simply gone to where he was pushed, knelt when told to, and stared off into space with grim shock, his mouth pressed into a thin line and his face ashen.

The four shots had rang through the air in patient succession, William's wife sobbing hysterically as her children were shot before all went silent as she was shot, as well. When it had come to be William's turn, he had stayed silent, his eyes finally trailing up in an attempt to meet Solomon's cold gaze.

Before their eyes could meet, though, William had been shot in the back of the head, blood and bits of skull and gray matter spraying the ground before he slumped over.

Solomon had sneered, growling a complaint about getting "traitor's blood" on his shoes, then had kicked William off of his feet before walking around the courtyard of his home slowly, delivering an impassioned, resounding speech to his men and their families about loyalty.

Renault, stoic even at that young age, had simply stood by his stepmother's side quietly, letting her squeeze his hand until her nails had made his palm bleed.

Still, for the small, weak, empathic thing she was, she hadn't cried. Though she was weak in body, Samantha Curtiss had been an emotionally strong woman, able to keep it together and seem as stoic as Renault was naturally as long as she could hold his hand and let out her fear and pain through that one shared bit of contact.

As long as she had someone by her side, Samantha could be strong. Initially, Solomon had been the one to give her that strength. As the years had passed, though, and Solomon's personality had soured, Samantha had turned to her stepson, who had grown from a boy who had openly hated her into a lumbering, powerful young man who would gladly hold her hand as long as she didn't cry in front of his father and get herself in trouble.

No, after seeing Samantha get in trouble with his father the first time, Renault doubted he could let his father hit her again without lashing out at the man and get in trouble, himself. And Samantha had known that.

So, he had let her close and become a pillar for her, and Samantha had done her best to protect him in her own way, in return. And then, after they were done being Solomon's family in public, when they could go to a room of the house far away from him and be alone, only then would Samantha break down against her stepson's chest.

After that first execution, such events became a regular occurrence, Solomon quickly taking care of anyone who was rumored to be planning on fleeing.

When the police raid came four months after the tensions had begun to rise, Solomon had only had five loyal men left.

That had also included his son, who had been fully inducted into the family out of Solomon's growing need for more manpower, though Solomon would say that it was about time his son joined, anyway.

It was during this hard, tense time that Renault would learn how to fight and, more importantly, how to capitalize on his stoicism; first, he had learned to be oblivious to fists and feet, then pipes and clubs, then blades, and, finally, then gunshot wounds. It was during this hard, tense time that Renault became "Ironhide."

Still, when the police raid came, Renault… wasn't there for it.

Samantha had made sure of that.

The moment she had heard the banging on the front door, the angry shouts and demands for entrance in the name of the Crown and the Law, she had hurried her stepson down into the cellar, where she had all but commanded that he hide in the ash pit of the giant fireplace the house sported.

…It would be the first time in his life Renault would beg.

Samantha had smiled at him softly, assured him she would be just fine, but that she needed to stay on the outside to make sure the door shut, and then locked him inside of the pitch-black, ash-filled room by himself.

Not forcing her into that cramped, claustrophobia-inducing space with him would become the greatest regret of Renault's life.

He stayed in the ash dump for nine hours, struggling to breathe, to stay calm, to keep himself from going against his stepmother's wishes and busting out so he could tuck her away in there. Yes, she would probably have an asthma attack, but at least he would know that she was safe.

Nine hours of being trapped in that space, with no light, no sound, no _feeling_…

Why had he stayed in there for so long?

Though he hadn't known why back then, Renault… would later come to the conclusion that he had been waiting for Samantha to open the door and let him out, that he had been waiting for her to give him a guilty smile and apologize for stuffing him into that small space, waiting for her to fret over how dirty and ill he looked, waiting to be presented with the opportunity to fret over her, himself, in his own, stoic way, and then she would smile softly at his guarded concerns, hug him and tell him that she lov—

…When he finally couldn't take it anymore, Renault had used his size and strength to simply break the heavy metal door off of its bolted hinges and, his legs having long since gone numb, his lungs weak from breathing so much ash, and his eyes flaring with pain in an attempt to adjust to even the dim lighting of the cellar, he'd simply fallen with the door and collapsed on top of it with a pained thud, struggling to breathe and shaking violently.

Once he'd recovered enough, Renault had staggered to his feet and run around the house as quickly as he could, hardly noticing when he nearly slipped and fell over and over again that it was because there were pools of blood everywhere. He had been far too focused on searching all of the other potential hiding places for his stepmother.

But there was no one.

The house was empty.

…It hadn't taken much after that for Renault to realize that he had to leave. Wherever the police had gone, it wouldn't be long before they came back, and his stepmother… No… his mother… He wouldn't let whatever sacrifice she had made be in vain by letting himself get caught.

When he had gone to pack a few things, he had come across another puddle of blood and, for the first time, really registered its presence, staring down at it and the smears he had left in it in his scramblings…

The idea of it being Samantha's blood had made him leave the house without taking anything with him.

After that, for the first time in his life, Renault hadn't had someone around to tell him what to do.

His entire life, he had been taught to obey the orders of his father, taught to obey the orders of his fathers advisors, taught to wait to be told to do every little thing.

And now, he had no one.

So, he hadn't done much of anything. He hadn't known what to do, where to go, how to live… So he wandered.

And, in his shock and confusion, he hadn't paid much attention to where.

And then, one day—

"If you want to die so badly, why not simply turn yourself in?"

The question had snapped him out of his daze, and it was in that moment that Renault had laid eyes on the critical, derisive Mathilda Solidor for the first time.

"You have been wandering in circles for four days, and you have looped by the police station twenty-two times. Frankly, I'm surprised you haven't been caught. Still, whatever you're planning, if anything, it won't do you any good. Every last member of the Curtiss crime syndicate, other than yourself, is dead."

…It wasn't as if he was suicidal; Renault was too… impassive to ever become depressed enough to be suicidal.

Still, Renault had been born and raised into a crime family, where he had been taught that "familial" ties meant everything, and that men who didn't have a "family" didn't have a reason to live.

So, if he was the last Curtiss… then the Curtiss' were dead.

He was alone.

He had nowhere to go.

And for a man of his upbringing, his limited training and skills, his antisocial and violent tendencies… the only logical option, in his view, was death.

Maybe he should turn himself in, he had thought.

After all, it was only a matter of time before the police—

"Do you want a job?"

…With those five words, Renault had ceased to be a Curtiss.

* * *

><p>After she had brought Renault back with her, Mathilda had immediately had him spar with her other bodyguards to determine his strong and weak points.<p>

As soon as she had learned of the reasoning behind Renault's nickname of "Ironhide," Mathilda had suddenly approached Renault and told him that she knew _exactly_ where she would be using him.

Renault hadn't been entirely surprised when she had told him he would be a bodyguard.

He had, though, been stunned when he had met the one he would be charged with guarding.

Gracia had been a terribly small, weak thing when he had met her, and when he was told her age and figured out she was several years younger than him, she had only seemed even smaller.

Impossibly small.

Dangerously small.

He had almost refused to take up the position; putting the care of someone that small, that weak, that _sickly_ in his hands was just irresponsible.

She would probably just hurt herself out of some fear-induced reaction as soon as she saw—

…She had smiled at him.

A weak smile, yes, but Gracia had smiled and given him a polite little curtsy, and as soon as Mathilda had told her he would be his bodyguard, Gracia had walked over to him and taken his hand, looking it over wonderingly, all barriers falling down in the face of her new and only bodyguard.

Both of her palms had fit in one of his. He absently remembered thinking that one of his fingers was almost as thick as one of her delicate little wrists.

When Mathilda had left them momentarily to tend to something, Gracia continued studying his hand intently, and Renault had passively wondered if she could see the blood staining his hand.

Then, she had looked up at him, smiled again, and told him he was tall enough to help her reach her doll, who had accidentally been put up high in a closet by a maid while the room had been cleaned.

He had silently given in and retrieved the doll for her… and she had hugged his leg.

After that… he had given in.

Renault had let Mathilda place Gracia in his bloodstained hands, feeling that her purity, so much like his stepmother's, would keep her from being sullied. When Mathilda had told him that being Gracia's bodyguard would be easier for him if he had some knowledge of medicine, he had let her send him to classes, not realizing until some time into his education that she planned on him becoming a fully licensed medical practitioner.

As the years went by with Renault serving as Gracia's bodyguard, he grew larger, more powerful, wiser, and he came to appreciate what Mathilda had done for him… what Gracia had given him.

With Mathilda, he had always felt pushed to do better, be stronger, become more capable, and to succeed on his own. She had made him independent.

With Gracia, he never felt feared, and he felt that he, once again, was a pillar for someone in a way that no one else could be. She had given him the trust and acceptance that only a handful of others had.

There wasn't a day that went by that he didn't remember who he had been, what he had done, and who he had done it with, but there also wasn't a day when he ever thought of himself as a Curtiss.

He also never thought of himself as "Ironhide."

Still, there were times when he looked in on the Solidor family… and saw his own.

He saw Solomon in Mathilda. Mathilda, the one who would push until it hurt and not care.

He saw Samantha in Silas. Silas, the one who took all of the blows that came because, after so much time, there simply wasn't an alternative.

He saw himself in Gracia. Gracia, the one who… didn't particularly want the future she had been born with, but wasn't about to complain.

As time passed, Renault's loyalties slowly swayed to Gracia and Gracia alone. Yes, he would never be able to repay Mathilda for what she had done for him, but Gracia…

…It wasn't that he felt he was meant to protect her, it was the fact that he had _chosen_ to, and the fact that she had accepted him.

A bodyguard was fated to die for the one they were contracted to, and Renault had made the decision to give his life to Gracia.

She and she alone was his Mistress.

And he would stand by her side until the end.

As more time passed and Renault was forced to watch her live through Vincent, forced to sit back and do nothing when she disappeared, forced to watch her stumble awkwardly around Komui Lee because he was what she wanted… this decision only became more and more concrete.

She and she alone was his Mistress.

He would stay by he side until the end.

…Though he was getting the feeling that, with Komui around, the end… wasn't as far off as it had once seemed.


End file.
